See a Kotex ad advertising a Marjorie May
booklet.
See many more similar booklets.
See ads for menarche-education booklets:
Marjorie May's Twelfth Birthday (Kotex, 1932),
Tampax tampons (1970, with Susan Dey), Personal
Products (1955, with Carol Lynley), and German o.b.
tampons (lower ad, 1981)
And read Lynn Peril's series about these
and similar booklets!
Read the full text of the 1935 Canadian edition
of Marjorie May's Twelfth Birthday, probably identical to the American edition.
More ads for teens (see also introductory
page for teenage advertising): Are you in the know? (Kotex napkins and Quest napkin powder, 1948, U.S.A.),
Are you in the know? (Kotex
napkins and belts, 1949, U.S.A.)Are you in
the know? (Kotex napkins, 1953, U.S.A.),
Are you in the know? (Kotex
napkins and belts, 1964, U.S.A.), Freedom
(1990, Germany), Kotex (1992, U.S.A.), Pursettes (1974, U.S.A.), Pursettes (1974, U.S.A.), Saba (1975, Denmark)
See early tampons and a list of tampon on this site - at least the ones I've cataloged.
 
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Strictly Feminine, menstruation and puberty
booklet for teenage girls (1969, U.S.A., The Personal Products Co., maker
of Modess pads)
complete booklet
with a letter from a mother to her daughter's doctor
Apparently one of the most common questions girls and parents asked
when about to use tampons was, "Um, how 'bout the hymen?" - in
other words, about virginity. People opposed tampons right from the beginning
partly because of this and do today, for example in Hispanic cultures, as
Tambrands and Procter & Gamble found
out in the 1990s when trying to increase tampon use in Mexico (scoll to
third item down).
The undated letter below possibly comes
from a mother whose daughter was a patient in the Children's Rehabilitation
Unit at the University of Kansas Medical Center, Kansas City: that organization
is stamped on the inside front cover (not shown) of the booklet below. The
letter, below, in an undated envelope (not shown) came with the booklet
when a Dutchman bought them at auction. The doctor - Leona's title on the
envelope is "Dr." - addressed the envelope to the writer of the
letter and stamped it PERSONAL. I find it interesting that the writer called
the doctor by her first name and signed it "Love." Her daughter
could have been in rehabilitation long enough to allow a close relationship
to develop.
What happened is just what the maker of the booklet, the Modess menstrual
pad and tampon manufacturer, wanted: to have a medical figure give the booklet
to a patient rather than deliver the explanation herself. Since at least
the 1920s menstrual products companies have used puberty education booklets
to promote their products; see an example here from
1928 and many more here.
I think the title seeks to reinforce the idea of femininity - "daintiness"
in the words of so many ads - to combat some of the things that many women
hate about menstruation.
I thank the Dutch contributor for the scan of the letter!
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Below: The back (at left) and front covers. The 34-page booklet measures 13.5 x 17.5 cm (5.25 x 6.87").
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Below: A letter the Dutch contributor found
in his copy of this booklet. I blacked out the name of the writer. See the
pages the doctor recommended.
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© 2007 Harry Finley. It is illegal to reproduce or distribute any
of the work on this Web site in any manner
or medium without written permission of the author. Please report suspected
violations to hfinley@mum.org
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